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Glutamine and the Over-Training Syndrome
Most weight trainers and other athletes are familiar with the Over-training Syndrome. Excessive training with insufficient rest intervals can result in an over-trained state, which in turn, leaves the athlete at risk of muscle or connective tissue injury, infection, chronic fatigue, and under performance.
Strangely enough, one of the "nonessential" amino acids - glutamine - appears to play a key role in preventing Over-training Syndrome. Although classified as nonessential because it can be synthesized from other amino acids, glutamine is in face, the most abundant amino acid in human muscle and blood. It is critically important for growing and regenerating cells, including those found in exercised muscle tissues, and white blood cells.
During catabolic states such as surgery, injury, infection and the recovery period following high intensity exercise, glutamine supplies are taxed, and the body cannot manufacture it from other amino acids nearly fast enough to meet the demand. To sustain tissue growth and healing, and to turn catabolism into anabolism, glutamine must be supplied from somewhere else, namely, dietary protein, or supplementation.
Several recent scientific articles on the Over-training Syndrome discuss the relationship of glutamine nutrition to the symptoms of over-training. Athletes with these symptoms have lower levels of plasma glutamine at rest than active healthy controls. These reduced levels of glutamine impact white blood cells, reducing the ability of the immune system to ward off infection.
In catabolic stress states, including the recovery period after exercise, tissue requirements for glutamine are increased, while plasma glutamine is depleted. This is, of course, the period during which it is MOST CRITICAL to maintain proper nutrition in order to GAIN strength from the precious workout, rather than lose it!
In fact, it takes several hours for normal (pre-exercise) levels of glutamine to be restored. The problem is compounded if the athlete does not allow for adequate recovery periods between workouts, creating a serious shortage of glutamine. Eventually, the Over-training Syndrome sets in, accompanied by low plasma glutamine levels that can persist for months or years.
Clearly, this data makes a strong argument for high-protein supplementation immediately before and after workouts, and for glutamine supplementation for several hours or days after workouts. Without adequate glutamine, not only are the benefits of the previous workout lost, but the entire body is put at risk of eventual Over-training Syndrome - with its staleness, tiredness, injuries, infections, and all the rest.
If you currently suffer from over-training, crank up the glutamine and total protein intake, and give you body a chance to re-accumulate its reserves
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